What if earlier knowledge of Qinghao?

This is a spin-off form the Earlier Technology Thread. Antimalarial Qinghao extract "discovered" (1971) This is currently the most effective treatment for malaria that has largely made quinine obsolete. First developed by Chinese researchers in the 70's, but first appeared in ancient texts back to the 2nd century B.C.
How would history change if it was used earlier? That should change the conquest and exploitation of sub Sahara Africa drastically. The earliest possible POD would probably be a Chinese envoy to ancient Rome who although happens to be a scholar with some medical knowledge. Quite useful for a long journey so not too unlikely. But any other POD would do it as well.
 

archaeogeek

Banned
This is a spin-off form the Earlier Technology Thread. Antimalarial Qinghao extract "discovered" (1971) This is currently the most effective treatment for malaria that has largely made quinine obsolete. First developed by Chinese researchers in the 70's, but first appeared in ancient texts back to the 2nd century B.C.
How would history change if it was used earlier? That should change the conquest and exploitation of sub Sahara Africa drastically. The earliest possible POD would probably be a Chinese envoy to ancient Rome who although happens to be a scholar with some medical knowledge. Quite useful for a long journey so not too unlikely. But any other POD would do it as well.

Earlier anti-malarials in the old world would likely not open up subsaharan africa to conquest, but to trade, as prior to the 18th-19th century the african polities were treated on an equal footing. Although the muslims and indians did trade extensively.
 
This is a spin-off form the Earlier Technology Thread. Antimalarial Qinghao extract "discovered" (1971) This is currently the most effective treatment for malaria that has largely made quinine obsolete. First developed by Chinese researchers in the 70's, but first appeared in ancient texts back to the 2nd century B.C.
How would history change if it was used earlier? That should change the conquest and exploitation of sub Sahara Africa drastically. The earliest possible POD would probably be a Chinese envoy to ancient Rome who although happens to be a scholar with some medical knowledge. Quite useful for a long journey so not too unlikely. But any other POD would do it as well.
Any single anti-malarial used on a regular basis will cause immunity to develop.

So if you have a tiny minority of imperial overlords ruling the area and taking the drug, then resistance might not build up, but if any sizeable numbers of people use it, resistance will develop.

It's hard to hold down a population with that small a structure unless you have the 'guns vs spears' tech superiority of that the Europeans had in Africa....
 
Top